49ers clinch 1st NFC West title in 9 years

On the day the 49ers‘ quarterback secured a playoff berth for the first time in his seven-season, 66-game career, he threw deep, and he threw deep and, at long last, he connected on a 52-yard, third-quarter pass to Michael Crabtree in a 26-0 win over the Rams that clinched San Francisco’s first NFC West title since 2002.

Fittingly, Smith, the long-embattled quarterback, played a starring role as the franchise officially ended its journey in the NFL wilderness.

Smith termed it a “hat-and-T-shirt game,” referring to the division-title gear players sported in the celebratory locker room. He wore his hat – and a wide grin – in discussing his first title since his days at the University of Utah.

“We’ve talked about it since I’ve been here, and it’s no different this year,” Smith said. “Every team talks about it: Win your division. And it’s sweet to clinch it.”

Smith had a career-high 142.3 passer rating, and his long toss to Crabtree neatly captured the persistence of a No. 1 pick who has remained in San Francisco despite the wishes of an ear-splitting segment of the 49ers’ faithful.

Smith has quieted most of his critics, but his ability to chuck it deep remains a question mark. Entering Sunday, he hadn’t completed a pass for more than 44 yards this season, ranking last in that category in the NFL.

Not that the lack of deep balls was entirely his fault.

In a 16-6 loss to the Ravens on Thanksgiving, Smith completed a 75-yard touchdown pass to Ted Ginn Jr. … that was erased by a debatable chop-block penalty. Then, in the second quarter Sunday, Smith dropped in a perfectly placed 40-yarder … that wide-open tight end Vernon Davis dropped in the end zone.

Smith also unsuccessfully flung the ball deep to Ginn on back-to-back plays in the second quarter – throwing it out of bounds each time – and then finally found Crabtree on the 52-yarder, which gave San Francisco a 16-0 lead.

In the fourth quarter, Smith hit Kyle Williams in stride on a slant, and the speedy second-year wideout outran the St. Louis secondary for the final 48 yards of a 56-yard touchdown.

“It was nice to finally hit that one to Michael and then obviously to have Kyle take that one all the way,” Smith said. “We were leaving some stuff out there for sure. … We missed the long ball to Vernon and then left some opportunities in the red zone.”

Indeed, the 49ers (10-2) had just three field goals to show for three first-half drives that ventured inside St. Louis’ 18-yard line. Their 9-0 halftime lead would have sufficed as San Francisco’s defense overwhelmed the Rams (2-10).

Playing with backup quarterback A.J. Feeley, St. Louis had 157 yards, averaged 1.3 yards on 23 carries and had nearly as many punts (eight) as first downs (10). Ten of St. Louis’ 12 drives ended after it had run four plays or fewer.

It didn’t set up as a fair fight: The Rams entered ranked second to last in the NFL in scoring (12.7 points per game), and the 49ers lead the league in fewest points allowed (13.4). And the results were predictable, even with All-Pro inside linebacker Patrick Willis exiting in the first quarter with a hamstring injury.

“I wasn’t even aware of the stats for this game until I heard it on the radio,” Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo said. “They played better than we did on that side of the football.”

The 49ers’ defense is playing historically well. Their 13.4 points per game allowed would rank first in franchise history and, if sustained, would be the latest record to fall this season. On Sunday, Frank Gore (7,396 career rushing yards) surpassed Hall of Famer Joe Perry as the franchise’s all-time leading rusher on a 2-yard carry in the second quarter. David Akers set the franchise record for field goals in a season (32).

It’s setting up as a celebratory season, and first-year head coach Jim Harbaugh, credited for much of the turnaround, was the target of a celebratory Gatorade dumping by left tackle Joe Staley at the two-minute warning. Harbaugh was pleased to note the liquid rolled right off his ubiquitous black fleece sweatshirt.

“It just rolls right off this thing,” Harbaugh said. “Incredible fabric. … This thing is like iron.”